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Review: Intel Core i5-4690K Devil's Canyon (22nm Haswell)

by Tarinder Sandhu on 20 June 2014, 14:00

Tags: Intel (NASDAQ:INTC)

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Take Two For Devil's Canyon

The much-anticipated release of Intel's Devil Canyon CPUs - Core i7-4790K and Core i5-4690K - was announced at this year's Computex trade show in early June.

Devil's Canyon refers to just these two processors. They're different from the incumbent K-series chips for two reasons. First off, they feature newer thermal interface material that is supposed to lower temperatures by providing a better conduit between core and heatspreader. Secondly, they accommodate extra capacitors that, Intel says, provide more stable voltage regulation at higher frequencies.

We've already taken a look at the range-topping Core i7-4790K. Though the fastest Haswell-based Core i7 we've tested, we found no real difference between its overclocking potential and that of those 4770K chips readily available in the channel. Perhaps our engineering-sample wasn't great at overclocking, or Devil's Canyon chips simply aren't the advancement we expected, but we thought it made sense to look at the second-rung model, the Core i5-4690K.

Desktop Intel 'Haswell' Feature Comparison

 
Intel Core i7-4790K
Intel Core i7-4770K
Intel Core i5-4690K
Intel Core i5-4670K
Intel Pentium G3258
Intel Pentium G3220
Launch Date
Q2 2014
Q2 2013
Q2 2014
Q2 2013
Q2 2014
Q3 2013
Cores
4
4
4
4
2
2
Threads
8
8
4
4
2
2
Unlocked multiplier
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
CPU Clock Speed
4.0GHz
3.5GHz
3.5GHz
3.4GHz
3.2GHz
3.0GHz
CPU Turbo Speed
4.4GHz
3.9GHz
3.9GHz
3.8GHz
-
-
Smart Cache
8 MB
8MB
6MB
6MB
3MB
3MB
TDP
88W
84W
88W
84W
53W
53W
DDR3 Memory Support
1,600
1,600
1,600
1,600
1,333
1,333
Integrated Graphics
HD 4600
HD 4600
HD 4600
HD 4600
HD
HD
IGP Execution Units
20
20
20
20
10
10
IGP Base Clock
350MHz
350MHz
350MHz
350MHz
350MHz
350MHz
IGP Max Clock
1.25GHz
1.25GHz
1.20GHz
1.20GHz
1.10GHz
1.10GHz
QuickSync Video
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Wireless Display
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
ClearVideo HD
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
InTru 3D
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Displays Supported
3
3
3
3
3
3
PCI Express Revision
3.0
3.0
3.0
3.0
3.0
3.0
PCI Express Configurations
Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4
Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4
Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4
Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4
Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4
Up to 1x16, 2x8, 1x8/2x4
Max PCI Express Lanes
16
16
16
16
16
16
Turbo Boost
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Hyper Threading
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
vPro
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
AES New Instructions
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Socket
LGA1150
LGA1150
LGA1150
LGA1150
LGA1150
LGA1150
US Box RRP
$340
$340
$242
$242
$72
$64

Trotting out the usual table shows there to be very minor differences between the 4690K and well-known 4670K. Both are priced at $242 (Ā£170-ish in the UK) and feature four non-hyperthreaded cores. The only meaningful specification difference, as far as we can tell, is the higher clockspeed. Intel's meagre increase is reflected by an additional 100MHz on both standard and Turbo frequencies.

So why would you bother with this chip if you already have a Core i5? You wouldn't, really, and it's only a processor we'd recommend to enthusiasts looking to build a brand-new system. The clinching factor, of course, is just how well it overclocks, and we'll get to that in a moment.

What is the Intel Core i5-4690K? A slightly faster version of the chip that has been around for more than a year. Let's now cut to the benchmark chase.